(decorate) make more attractive by adding ornament, colour, etc.; "Decorate the room for the party"; "beautify yourself for the special day"

letters

(letter) a written message addressed to a person or organization; "mailed an indignant letter to the editor"

A school or college initial as a mark of proficiency, esp. in sports

the literary culture; "this book shows American letters at its best"

scholarly attainment; "he is a man of letters"

A character representing one or more of the sounds used in speech; any of the symbols of an alphabet

A written, typed, or printed communication, esp. one sent in an envelope by mail or messenger

wall

A continuous vertical brick or stone structure that encloses or divides an area of land

an architectural partition with a height and length greater than its thickness; used to divide or enclose an area or to support another structure; "the south wall had a small window"; "the walls were covered with pictures"

A side of a building or room, typically forming part of the building's structure

surround with a wall in order to fortify

Any high vertical surface or facade, esp. one that is imposing in scale

anything that sests a wall in structure or function or effect; "a wall of water"; "a wall of smoke"; "a wall of prejudice"; "negotiations ran into a brick wall"

Wall sayings and designs are the latest trend in interior decorating and home decor. It is an easy and creative way to add personality and charm to Any Room! Vinyl Lettering is a creative way to transform any room into a stylish, unique space. By applying your favorite sayings directly to your walls you will create daily inspiration with a beautiful hand-painted look. The graphic is ready to apply and is cut from high quality Avery vinyl film with a outdoor life of 6 yrs and should last for a very long time indoors (25+yrs.). Installation instructions are included for a simple, professional install in minutes. Measures 23"x10.5" and comes with detailed instructions

I was talking to one of the judicial clerks today when Commissioner Roger Hartsell passed by and motioned for me to come into his chambers. He is an avid baseball fan, and his chambers are decorated with all sorts of photos, trading cards, autographed baseballs, books, and other memorabilia related to the sport; moreover, he knows that I also love the game (although I haven't followed it much in recent years), and that I am a history enthusiast as well. (I'm even known to have historical dreams on occasion, but that is another story.)

This is what he wanted to show me. It is a new acquisition, hanging on his wall in a frame. My interest perked up when I approached it closely enough to recognize the signature of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and when I started reading the text, I immediately knew what this was. Here is the story behind it, which he and I discussed for a few minutes:

In January, 1942, shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor and amid some of the darkest days of World War II, Judge Kennesaw Mountain Landis, who served at the time as Commissioner of Baseball, wrote to President Roosevelt and asked if he thought the upcoming baseball season should be cancelled, in view of the pressures and exigiencies associated with the war effort. There had been precedent for such an action; President Woodrow Wilson, a rather dour, humorless man and no baseball fan himself, had requested that the 1918 season be cut short because of American involvement in World War I, which, in Wilson's view, had reduced the game to a useless and inappropriate distraction. (As a result of that request, the 1918 World Series was held in September of that year, a full month earlier than usual.) Roosevelt, however, was a very different man, and he enjoyed the game. He responded to Judge Landis's question by sending him this famous letter, reproduced here. As a result, baseball continued throughout the war years as an annual April-to-October American ritual, although the overall quality of play was reduced rather substantially because so many of the game's top stars -- Joe DiMaggio, Bob Feller, Ted Williams, and Hank Greenberg, among dozens of others -- served in the military during the conflict. (It might say something about the quality of wartime baseball that the last time the Chicago Cubs have appeared in a World Series was in 1945!)

As an afterthought, and with a touch of humor, I am dedicating this image to my dance instructor, Miss Angie, for whom I have such enormous respect and affection. Football is definitely her sport of choice, and I really don't think she cares all that much for baseball. Why, then, do I do this? Well, it's because I tend to think in terms of historical analogies and comparisons, and there is a very good one here that applies perfectly to her. It is this: I recently went through a Great Depression of my own, and Angie has sort of been the FDR of my personal New Deal. :-)

(Update: I have changed the title of this image in order to ensure that Angie looks at it, as it would not attract her attention otherwise. As of one hour ago as I write this, I know she had not looked at my photostream recently enough to have noticed this little tribute.)

Decorated walls

Tradition has it that this abbey, founded by Greek monks in the eighth century, was restored and occupied by the Templars in the thirteenth century. When, in the fourteenth century, this powerful Order was dissolved, were replaced by the Cistercians.

This abbey is linked to a medieval legend, where it is said that in 1312, when it was put to the stake the last Templar Grand Master, the lintels of churches were broken. Even today, carefully observing the lintel of the main portal of the abbey, you can glimpse a crack. Indications of the presence Templar crosses are made of some features: the first large step in the church floor, the ceiling of the cloister and the most famous all carved in the left eye of the central rose window, came to light during the restoration of the century. In recent times, on the western side of the cloister, knocking down a wall fake, have come to light, scratched on the plaster original, magical words of the five famous palindrome: SATOR AREPO TENET OPERA ROTAS, with the variant, so far unique, that twenty-five letters are arranged in five concentric circular rings, each divided into five areas, to form a shape similar to a target.
The simultaneous presence of the square together with the triple circle, the symbol adopted by the Templars and is found several times in the support walls of the columns of the cloister, has led Professor Bianco Capone, on the basis of careful study and personal research, to hypothesize a link between the square and the Templars: it would seem, in fact, that the knights, probably custodians of valuable esoteric knowledge, have used this symbol to mark a particular place or to transmit encrypted information.